Odimo joins the growing ranks of web retailers going public

Odimo Inc., which operates Diamond.com and other e-commerce sites, wants to go public. On Friday, Odimo filed an IPO with plans to offer 3.1 million shares with a proposed price $9 a share after initially filing with a range of $11 to $13.

The transaction is being handled by CIBC World Markets. According to its newly issued prospectus, Odimo had net sales of $41.7 million for the year ended Dec. 31, 2003, representing a 51.5% increase from the prior year. For the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2004, Odimo had net sales of $30.7 million, representing a 31.2% increase from the comparable period in the prior year.

However, the company continues to operate in the red. According to the prospectus, Odimo has experienced net losses each year since 1998, including a net loss of $7.1 million for the year ended Dec. 31, 2003, and $10.6 million for the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2004 with an accumulated deficit of $67 million as of Sept. 30, 2004.

With the proceeds of the IPO, Odimo intends to use $15.6 million for general corporate purposes, including the acquisition of inventory, site upgrades and marketing activities.